Do You Want to Be the Fourth Hokage?

Tsunade straightened her expression, and her opening words were earth-shattering:

"Hatake Sakumo, do you want to become the Fourth Hokage?"

"With your contributions, you are more than qualified to take the position. As long as you want it, I can support you."

Ye Ning's eyes widened in an instant.

He had never expected that when Tsunade invited Hatake Sakumo over, it would be to discuss such explosive news.

At the same time, Ye Ning realized that the world of the Shinobi World had undergone subtle changes from the very moment he saved the White Fang of the Leaf.

He was a small butterfly flapping its wings, and he had no way of predicting where the future would ultimately lead.

Just like now.

In the original story, by this time, the White Fang of the Leaf had already committed suicide, and Tsunade would soon leave the Hidden Leaf to travel. Yet here they were, drinking at the same table, even discussing the matter of the Fourth Hokage.

Most crucially, within the current Hidden Leaf, Tsunade and Hatake Sakumo were truly capable of deciding the candidate for the Fourth Hokage!

The two of them—one was a member of the Sannin who had gained fame in the Land of Rain battlefield by saving countless wounded and facing Hanzo directly, while the other was the White Fang of the Leaf who had led the Hidden Leaf ninjas to crush the Land of Wind forces head-on. Although other ninjas had made contributions on different battlefields, they still paled in comparison to these two.

It could be said that the two people with the highest prestige in the Hidden Leaf were both sitting right here.

Under these circumstances, if Tsunade chose to support Hatake Sakumo's bid for the Fourth Hokage, there was a very high probability of success.

If it were just the two of them, the outcome might still be uncertain.

But what if they added him, and added the Daimyo?

Although the selection of the Hokage required the approval of the previous Hokage or the elders, and going to the Daimyo's palace was merely a formality, in reality, the Daimyo could truly influence the choice of the Hokage to a certain extent.

During the Third Shinobi World War, the Third Hokage had suffered heavy losses due to poor command, leading to failure on the front lines. After the war, under pressure from various criticisms—especially the Daimyo's dissatisfaction with the defeat—he was forced to resign, and Minato Namikaze succeeded him as the Fourth Hokage.

This showed that the Daimyo actually had a certain level of influence over the succession of the Hokage.

Of course, this influence was usually limited to choosing from a small pool of candidates.

In that case, was it really possible to force the Third Hokage to abdicate?

To be honest, Ye Ning didn't have much ill will toward the Third Hokage himself; after all, Danzo took the blame for more than half of his failures.

But at times, the Third Hokage was simply too weak, or perhaps his tolerance for Danzo was too high, which allowed Danzo's power and ambition to fester, leading to one disgusting act after another.

If someone else were to become the Hokage, Danzo would never be able to maintain such a high status, and naturally, he would have to restrain himself.

Hatake Sakumo's face also showed a hint of shock at Tsunade's proposal.

But soon, Hatake Sakumo gave his answer:

"Forget it."

Hatake Sakumo shook his head. Although he was still in his prime, he radiated a sense of weary twilight. "I once thought about becoming the Hokage one day. But now, that thought is gone. Kakashi has already graduated from the Ninja Academy, and my only hope now is to see him become an outstanding ninja in the future."

"I also hope he can carry on the Hatake Sword Technique. Other than that, I have no other desires."

Only when speaking of Kakashi did a bright light flash in Hatake Sakumo's eyes, his expression clearly that of a proud father.

Ye Ning blinked, remaining silent.

After all, this was Hatake Sakumo's own choice, and it wasn't his place to say much.

He was more interested in something else right now.

In the original story, Kakashi could be considered a strong contender for the title of the greatest genius in the history of the Hokage. Genin at five, Chunin at six, Jonin at twelve, and the developer of the A-rank jutsu, Chidori. This resume was unmatched by anyone except those with "hacks," and even Uchiha Itachi fell slightly short.

And everything he experienced could also compete for the top spot on the list of the most tragic characters.

He lost his father at five, witnessed his best friend "die" before his eyes at twelve, killed the girl who loved him with his own hands at thirteen, and just as he began to recover under his teacher's guidance after witnessing the birth of a new life, both his teacher and his teacher's wife perished.

If not for the ever-optimistic Might Guy constantly guiding him, his life would have been filled with nothing but tragedy.

Even his name meant "scarecrow in the rice field," a lonely watchman.

Many people in his past life fantasized: if Kakashi didn't have that "burdensome" Sharingan, and if his father hadn't passed away but had continued to teach him the Hatake Sword Technique, what level of strength could Kakashi have reached?

Ye Ning clicked his tongue.

He didn't know the answer to that question.

But he could witness the answer to that question with his own eyes.

Come to think of it... Kakashi has been wearing a mask since he was a child, right?

If there's a chance, he must go to Hatake Sakumo's house and take a good look at what that face under the mask really looks like.

"What about you, Tsunade? Why don't you want to become the Hokage?"

Hatake Sakumo took a few sips of wine and threw the question back, a hint of curiosity hidden in his eyes.

Logically speaking, since her grandfather and Second Granduncle were both Hokage, Tsunade should have been instilled with the idea of becoming the Hokage from a young age. Yet, Tsunade never had the dream of becoming the Hokage; even her dream when she was young was just to travel to every corner of the world and win at every casino.

In other words, it wasn't because of the death of Nawaki—who had always wanted to be the Hokage—that Tsunade began to reject the position.

Ye Ning was also very curious about this question.

"Hokage... being the Hokage is too tiring. There are endless documents to process every day and mountains of government affairs. If I have that kind of time, I'd rather go out and see the world. At the very least, I can drink and gamble!"

Tsunade pursed her lips, her expression quite bored. "Only an idiot would want to be the Hokage."

Hatake Sakumo: "..."

Only an idiot would want to become Hokage, so were you just trying to make me the Fourth Hokage?

Are you alright?

Fortunately, Hatake Sakumo knew that Tsunade was drunk, so he didn't take it to heart.

"I only hope that the time of peace can last a little longer."

Hatake Sakumo sighed softly, looked up at the clock hanging in the shop, and stood up:

"The time is about right; I need to go back and prepare dinner for Kakashi."

"Thank you for the hospitality, then, farewell."

The only response Hatake Sakumo received was Tsunade swaying unsteadily before finally collapsing onto the table with a loud 'thud'.